


A Knock at the Door

by PervyPenguin



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Blood, Hurt!Cas, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mentions of Violence, bunker!fic, post 9x03
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-25
Updated: 2014-08-25
Packaged: 2018-02-14 15:42:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2197389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PervyPenguin/pseuds/PervyPenguin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dean and Sam are hanging out at the bunker when there comes a <i>thump</i> at the door.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Knock at the Door

**Author's Note:**

  * For [diminuel](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=diminuel).



> Slightly canon divergent… As in Ezekiel wasn’t Gadreel, and healed Sammy and left. Post 9X03. Written for diminuel on Tumblr, cause I love her stuff.
> 
> Edited cause I somehow managed to lose a paragraph...

     The bunker was quiet, just the sound of Sam typing away at something on his laptop filling the space. Dean had taken to reading some of the more obscure books the Men of Letters had stocked up on over the years. Some of the creatures described just  _had_  to be bullshit. A werewolf that was not only  _not_  a feral, heart-eating freak, but actually helpful? No way. And, okay, maybe he hadn’t believed in leprechauns before that run in with fairies a couple years ago, but clurichauns were absolutely fake. Had to be. There was no-

_Thump._

     What the? “Did you hear that?” Dean asked.

     “Hmm? Hear what?” Sam replied.

_Thump._

     “There it is again.”

     Sam glanced around the room. “Sounds like something’s banging against the bunker door. You wanna check it out? Probably just some kids messing around.”

     His brother stared at him incredulously as he started up the stairs to the door. “You’re kidding. Kids? Kids messing around in the middle of fu- Cas!”

     Sprawled on the pavement at the bottom of the stairs to the bunker was the battered and bloody body of the former angel. For a terrifying moment, Dean was worried that Cas was dead, but when he knelt to check for his pulse, Cas moaned.

     “Sammy! Need some help up here!” Dean shouted. He turned back to Cas and softly cradled him against himself. “It’s gonna be okay, Cas. We’re gonna fix you up. I promise.”

     “Holy-! What happened to Cas?”

     “I don’t know, Sam. Help me get him inside. I want to get him in one of the rooms before we start interrogating him.”

     As gently as they could, the hunters maneuvered Castiel down the stairs and into the bedroom across from Dean’s. Sam left to get a first aid kit from the storage area, muttering to himself about what all they’d need to patch Cas up. Dean dragged a chair next to the bed and settled in, clasping Cas’ hand in his own.

     Cas groaned and his eyelids fluttered. “Dean?” His voice was a hoarse rasp.

     “Yeah, buddy, I’m here.”

     “I’m sorry, Dean. I don’t mean to be a bother.” Cas coughed. “As soon as I’m healed enough to leave, I will. I simply didn’t know where else to go.”

     As he spoke, Sam walked in. “Leave? What the hell, Cas? Why would you leave? For that matter, why  _did_  you leave?”

     Cas cast a bewildered between Sam and Dean. “D-dean?”

     Dean felt a prickling on the back of his neck and rubbed his hand over it. “Ah, yeah.” He sighed heavily. “Sammy, you’re gonna want to sit down. When you were doing those trials… It damn near killed you. I couldn’t lose you. Not again, not for real. I… I made a deal with an angel. He’d use you as a vessel, and he’d heal and you’d heal and everything would be fine.” Dean put a hand to his face and pushed a palm against his eyes. “But, uh… When Cas got here, dude said he’d leave if Cas stayed, since other angels would be after him. And you weren’t ready! You’d barely started getting better and I couldn’t… I had to choose.”

     Sam’s nostrils flared and he spoke in that low, controlled way he had when he was beyond pissed. “You-you let an angel in me?! And you never thought to tell me? Is he still here? God, Dean! What were you even thinking?!”

     “No, he’s not still in there! Do you seriously think you’d still be awake if he was? And I was thinking that I couldn’t lose my brother! It’s  _my_  job to take care of you Sammy. All my life, I’ve taken care of you, there’s no way you’re gonna die before me! I won’t- I won’t allow it!”

     “Dean, I’m not a kid anymore! I can take care of myself. You can’t keep doing this. You can’t keep making choices for me.”

     Cas coughed and both brothers turned to look at him, having seemingly forgotten he was there. Sam flushed and threw the first aid kit on the bed. “Take care of Cas, Dean. I gotta… I gotta get out of here for now. I’ll be back… Sometime. I need a couple days to cool down.”

     “Sam…”

     “No, Dean. I’ll come back, I swear, but I can’t look at you right now.” He walked out. Dean didn’t move until he heard the bunker door slam shut. The noise seemed to jump start him again.

     “Cas, I’m so-”

     Cas weakly held up a hand. “Dean, if you don’t mind, I’d rather take care of my wounds before we talk. I do not believe them to be life-threatening, but they are very painful and I walked a great distance to get here. I’m in pain and tired.”

     “Fuck. Yeah, yeah, we can definitely do that. I’ll get the stuff outta the kit; you wanna take off your shirt and pants?” Dean began rifling through the first aid kit, setting aside the peroxide, gauze, ace bandages and their make-shift suture kit. When he turned back towards Cas, Cas had managed to get his shirt off and was struggling to shove his jeans down his legs. “Hey, lemme help. You rest up some.”

     Cas nodded and lay back down on the bed. Dean moved toward the foot of the bed and first tugged off Cas’ ill-fitting shoes, peeling blood soaked socks away from the skin. He inhaled sharply at the damage to Cas’ feet, but didn’t say anything as he pulled the jeans off, leaving the former angel clad in only too-tight boxers and caked with blood.

     “Ok. First, I’m gonna run to the bathroom and grab a couple of wet cloths. If I can’t see your wounds, I can’t treat ‘em. Sit tight and I’ll be right back.”

     Cas nodded wearily. He didn’t have to wait long, it seemed only a minute or two had passed when Dean came back.

     “Do you, uh… Do you wanna tell me what happened? You don’t have too, but it could help me know how to take care of you, and it’d take your mind off it if this gets painful.” Dean said. It felt too close to rambling for his tastes, so he clamped his mouth shut and set about the task of gently cleaning Cas up.

     “I was in Nebraska. I found a job, it doesn’t pay much, but I managed to feed myself adequately. Housing was impossible to find, I was camping in a nature reserve.” Cas sighed. “Unfortunately, the angel you made that deal with was right; angels  _are_  after me. One of my sisters saw me at the gas station I worked at, and she and some others followed me to my campsite. We fought. I was lucky. That group of angels were not specifically trained for combat, so I was able to defeat them. But not before receiving most of these wounds. I did not wish to kill them, Dean, I have lost so many brothers and sisters… They would have followed me though, perhaps recruited more angels to take me down.” Cas closed his eyes and swallowed thickly in sorrow. “After that, I walked. I walked so long, hours and hours, to get to the bunker, to you and Sam. I didn’t know where else to go.”

     By the time his story is over, Dean had finished his initial clean up of dried blood. “Cas. I  _never_  wanted this to happen to you. I didn’t want you to leave at all. I just… Sam’s my brother. I couldn’t let him die, not without trying everything.”

     “Dean. I know. Sam is and always has been your priority. I do wish you had told me  _why_  you wouldn’t let me stay in the bunker. I would have understood. I could have… We could have kept in touch, as I wouldn’t believe you hated me for falling for Metatron’s lies.”

     Dean’s eyes widened and he nearly dropped the bowl he had the cloths in. “ _No,_ Cas. I  _never_  blamed you. I know better than anyone how good intentions can blow up in your face. You don’t have to forgive me, but you have to believe me.”

     “If I tell you I believe you, will you finish helping me tend my wounds?” Cas asked wryly.

     Dean gave a a choked off chuckle and nodded. “Yeah, let’s get you fixed up.”

     He quickly gave Cas some painkillers and set to work. The next half hour was spent carefully bandaging small wounds and carefully applying a splint to the two dislocated fingers on Cas’ left hand. Dean sewed a larger wound on the right side of Cas’ abdomen and applied gauze carefully. Finally, Dean gingerly tends to the burst blisters on Cas’ feet, applying cream and wrapping them tenderly in gauze and bandages. They end up looking rather ridiculous, but at least they’ll heal.

     “Thank you Dean. I do not wish to be a burden, but I’m grateful to you for letting me stay as long as you will.”

     Dean snorted as he moved the first aid kit off the bed. “Cas, I’m not letting you leave again. The only reason I let you leave before was that douche angel.” He sat on the bed next to Cas and sighed. “Just… consider this your home now, ok? You stay here, we’ll ward the place against angels, and if any show up, we’ll deal with them. If you wanna hunt with us, we’ll teach you to fight like a human. If you don’t, you can stay here with Kevin, help with research and shit. But you aren’t leaving m- here, again.”

     Cas cocked his head slightly to one side and asked softly, “Dean?”

     The hunter shoved a hand roughly through his hair. “I don’t want you bolting on me again. You lost your angel mojo, so no more poofing out right?”     

     Cas nodded warily.

     “Good. Cuz... I mean.... I want...” Dean growled, frustrated at his own lack of skills with words. As he looked at Cas, his blue eyes wide and trusting, he made a decision. He leaned forward, captured Cas' chin in his hand, and softly pressed his lips to Cas'. A soft, sweet, chaste kiss, just light pressure with no hint of tongue. Cas froze at first, but when the moment stretched on, he reached his right hand up to cup Dean's cheek.

     When they parted, Dean had a pink flush across his face and seemed nearly shy. Cas merely smiled encouragingly, wanting,  _needing_  to hear Dean say what was on his mind. He let Dean take his time, watched as the hunter closed his eyes and seemed to steel himself.

     “You’ll always be my angel, Cas,” Dean said softly, his blush deepening. “And I want you to stay with me, be with me. For… well, as long as we get.”

     Cas’ smile widened and he pulled Dean into a tight hug. “ _Of course_ , Dean. That’s all I’ve wanted for a long time.” Then he gave a pained groan. “But I think I might need some rest now.”

     “Yeah.” Dean cleared his throat. “Can I… stay?”

     Cas nodded and Dean carefully slid into the bed next to Cas. They laid close together, Dean resting one arm on Cas’ stomach, Cas’ head laying on Dean’s shoulder. They both slipped into sleep with a smile on their face.


End file.
